Bio-based cadaverine is a valuable platform chemical involved in the production of partially or fully bio-based products, such as partially or fully bio-based Nylon 56 and Nylon 510. Bio-based cadaverine can be synthesized via lysine decarboxylation of lysine in microorganisms. One way to separate and purify cadaverine from the bio-based production includes evaporation/distillation of cadaverine from an aqueous cadaverine composition. However, the cadaverine fermentation broth or enzymatic conversion solution may comprise involatile impurities that interfere with the cadaverine evaporation/distillation. Thus, the cadaverine evaporation/distillation may require high heating temperature and long evaporation/distillation time, while the cadaverine recovery yield is still relatively low and may contain undesired contaminations.
Generally, an aqueous cadaverine composition is obtained by adjusting the pH of an aqueous cadaverine salt composition with one or more bases so as to release cadaverine from cadaverine salts. Conventional bases such as sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, sodium phosphate and sodium carbonate, on the one hand, are expensive, and on the other hand, lead to significant environmental burden due to the production of large amounts of soluble basic salts that make waste treatment difficult.
Thus, there is a need to provide a purification method of cadaverine (e.g. bio-based cadaverine) in the presence of involatile impurities with improved recovery yield and cadaverine quality, and with reduced costs and environmental burden.